Five Master Houses of the World, a series of five documentary films by Rax Rinnekangas, will be screened in a cinema tent in the MFA courtyard in conjunction with the Helsinki Festival programme SHORT SHADOW, LONG JOURNEY. THE UNIVERSE OF RAX RINNEKANGAS.
Soundtrack in Finnish with English subtitles.
Free admission during the Night of the Arts. Other films: 1 film 5 euros/ 2 films 8 euros / 3 films 10 euros.
 
Night of the Arts: Friday, August 26th
 
Melnikov House, Russia 8:00 pm (58 min – 2007)
The Russian architect Konstantin Melnikov (1890–1974) designed and built his utopian house in downtown Moscow in the late 1920s. When Joseph Stalin prohibited modern architecture in the Soviet Union, Melnikov was denied the right to practise his profession and was effectively placed under house arrest for many years. The film tells the story of this amazing architectural icon and the fate of the architect imprisoned in his utopian creation. Free admission
 
Villa Mairea, Finland 9:15 pm (50 min – 2009)
The world-famous Finnish architect Alvar Aalto (1898–1976) designed Villa Mairea for his close friends Maire and Harry Gullichsen in Noormarkku near the west coast of Finland shortly before the Second World War. Occupying a former sawmill estate, the house is one of the most famous icons of modern architecture. The film illustrates the design process and reveals how it draws inspiration from Finnish cultural traditions, Japanese asceticism and international modernism. Free admission
 
Sunday, August 28th, 8:00 pm
Casa Estudio, Mexico (60 min – 2010)
The world-famous Mexican architect Luis Barragán (1902–1988) designed his home and studio in a working-class suburb of Mexico City shortly after the Second World War. The house became a magical home for its architect, but also an oasis of local colour, light and tranquillity. The film tells the story of this wondrous house as a sample of Barragán’s metaphysical architecture.
 
Monday August 29th, 8:00 pm
Le Cabanon, France (60 min – 2010)
The father of Modernism, Le Corbusier (1887-1965), sketched his Thoreau-inspired cabin in 45 minutes as a birthday present for his wife Yvonne in December 1951. The 16 m2 wooden cabin situated on a remote hillside on the French Riviera was to become a philosophical blueprint for a new minimalist lifestyle. The film tells the story Le Corbusier’s journey from pioneer of collective living to cabin-builder and his life in his unique refuge.
 
Tuesday August 30th, 8:00 pm
Koshino House, Japan (60 min – 2010)
The Japanese architect Tadao Ando (born 1941) designed Koshino House for the fashion designer Hiroko Koshino and her family in Ashiya, Hyogo, during 1979–84. The building has come to epitomise the beauty of raw concrete, asceticism and natural light. The film tells the story of Koshino House, its self-educated architect and his tireless efforts to unlock the secret to sustainable architecture.